TerriDoodle

Hi Purple Gurlz- Hope you all had a good Friday! I had the day off today and spent mid-day helping my elderly mom run a couple of errands. Well, I didn't have time for breakfast so by lunchtime I was starving! Mumsey wanted a burger and I was so hungry I just agreed to 'whatever'. I haven't had much restriction that I could tell for the last week or so, so I figured a burger, eaten slowly, will be OK. ***WRONG!!!*** I took two bites quickly and then experienced immediate PAIN!!! Well, my mom doesn't know I was banded, and I had just been talking about how hungry I was....so now what was I to do?? At least I did have the sense (thanks to this board) to stop eating immediately, not to drink anything and just wait it out. I made the excuse that I must be having an esophogeal spasm of some sort...that it's happened before...and I got up to walk around outside. I was soooooooo close to PBing...I could feel that all I had to do was will the food to come up and it would have, but I didn't want to dothat. I toughed it out...and then I 'slimed' for just a little while....so now I know what both of those things are all about, but I stopped eating in time so that it wasn't uncontrollable. Thank God!! Now I can't hardly eat solid food anymore...so I'll go back on mushies for a day or two. Bread is obviously a HUGE no-no for me, but I can have tortillas, crackers and pizza crust :rolleyes. But I tell you what, you PB once and you don't ever want to do it again!!! I'm glad I have had the experience now....and I'll be much, much more careful in the future! The big lesson here is: 1) if you start to feel a big golf-ball feeling iin your chest, STOP eating and don't start again until the pain goes away. 2) If you start eating again and the pain returns, WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE EATING ...STOP EATING IT IMMEDIATELY. 3) Do not drink anything...it will make it worse. 4) Get up and walk around, stretch your arms, take deep breaths....anything and everything to get that stuff moving down. 5) From there on out be very careful about eating...tiny bites, well chewed. Yikes.

WAY TO GO, LUNASA!!!!

Jenn - are you and dbf together or not? I thought ya'll had patched things up?! You are incredible for working in the pizza store and not eating all that stuff!! That's the kind of discipline that will really pay off for you-- resisting the urge to graze. I mean, it's one thing to say that you won't "deny yourself" because you don't want to diet again, etc....but it's quite another to recognize bad habits and rectify them. Grazing at a pizza parlour while you're working would definitely qualify as a bad habit! So kudos to you, girlfriend!!! TracyinKS - I am glad you decided not to mix it up with the "other family" this summer. Sperm Donor doesn't seem to me like he's all that interested if he's only paying $20/mo in support. Nothing makes me madder. Anyway, I think you'd be opening a can of worms and your DS is just too young...so much of his personality and the way he views the world is being shaped in these years...you have to be really careful. You have a very good heart and want to do what is right...but I think you ARE doing the right thing right now for your son. Protect him for 3-4 more years as best you can. My $0.02. I had the most frustrating day shopping yesterday Ican ever recall. Like 5 hours in the mall and only bought a 3 t-shirt-like things and a pair of very casual capris. I need work clothes but I don't want to part with the money!!! I'm still damn fat and the clothes still look like crap on me. This is very frustrating. And if I knew what size I was going to be next year, I would have gotten some nice Spring things on sale. Bah!! Sara - hey, what are you testing for, anyway? Did you say and I missed it or what? Getting a masters or a special license?? LUNASA - DID YOU GET OFF YOUR BUTT LAST NIGHT??

Ok, this just made me spew Propel out of my nose!!!! And then I read where Judy is gonna slip hubby some milkshakes and I started coughing and spewing all over again!! Oh, you girlz!! Jenn - I'm so happy for you getting all that homework done!! Did you ever sleep??? :notagree And now off to the gym!! Man, my hat is off to you!! I'd be making all kinds of excuses for myself to lay around and do nothing!! You have so much to be proud of...don't you dare sell yourself short!! You are amazing!

PURPLE jungle print w/ tiger heads???? :pound: Lovely!!! ....you must post a picture for us!

Lunasa - LOL....are you by chance a Gemini?? You sound just like me with needing the "next big project"! But, trust me, you do not want to get pregnant at this weight, have to get a complete unfill, and use your pregnancy as an excuse to eat everything in sight. I gained 42# during my first pregnancy (starting at 160#), at the age of 32. When DS was born I only lost 17#!! I held on to that weight until I got pregnant again 3 years later...now I was starting at 180#!! I gained 26# that time (smarter then) and only lost that weight with the help of Phen-Fen. Trust me again when I say that it is much harder (impossible) to find time to exercise, shop and cook after a baby is around! And that time is gone for many years. My very cheap advice is to take advantage of this time to get your body in great shape, break the old bad habits, and get down to your goal weight....THEN get pregnant. THAT can be your reward for all your hard work! And by the way.... GET OFF YOUR ASS AND GO EXERCISE!! MsJen - Congratulations on your first fill!! It's not so bad, eh?...except for that bruise! Wonder why? My port is real close to the surface so there's very little need for all that trauma....lucky I guess. Janie - ya'll crack me up with your 20+ year old clothes in your closets!! OMG! That's so funny! Reminds me, I'll have to save one or two of my 18W pants for my "after" picture!....y'know the one where I hold out the waist for the profile shot!?

Well, I don't really want to be buying a bunch of new clothes, but I hate wearing clothes that are too big! And I'm an executive secretary so I have to look half-way decent at work. I do have some nice clothes in my close that are from when I weighed 160 4 years ago that were expensive and I refused to give to charity! I think the smallest I have is size 14 reg. However, I am a bit of a closet-cleaner too and I have given away thousands of dollars worth of clothes ...which now makes me ill to think about. I seriously need to clean again but this time my bigger clothes are going to my best friend...so that's OK! I'm glad she can wear them. I worked with a new personal trainer tonight and he is wonderful!!! I wasn't too thrilled with the other one that I had and was having 2nd thoughts about the whole deal. But "Rory" is great and I'm really looking forward to it now. He's been training for 9 years so he knows what he's doing and is very attentive and NICE. Not an egotistical sadist like some of them are. This last week was pretty painful working those muscles for the first time and going thru that initial soreness (with NO Advil!), but I'm hoping it won't be so bad here on out. Gawd, I hope not!!!

OH OH OH!! And I had an NSV today at lunch! Was trying on some new clothes (everything is BIG in my closet!!!) and instinctively went for the 16W's, which is the next size down for me. They were all too big! Guess what?? 14W's are just right!! That's a drop of 2 sizes so far!! Almost into the regular womens sizes!...maybe another 10#. Now THAT is gonna be one helluva day.

Hi girlz - In this book that I'm reading about how to break old habits and reach for new goals, it says that you have to KNOW GOING IN that you are going to falter!! This isn't the first time, nor will it be the last, that you graze all day, or eat kolaches, or have two pieces of cake! What needs to be done is to have a plan for what you will do WHEN you falter. Will you slide into an oblivious binge or will you get a grip and get back on the horse the next day? My calories have been slipping away from me the last few days (thank you, peanut butter). So starting today I'm making better low-fat, high protein choices until I see that $*#%&! scale move. No chocolate, no sneaking treats, and lots of water. What is your plan the next time you have a setback?

Cool! No, I grew up and live in Houston but we have the family farm in New Taiton and all my best memories are there. I still have some family in El Campo and that's where we gather for holidays.

How are you feeling now, Robert?

Well, I am officially not losing weight either and my restriction is all gone and I am getting hungry. I am having to constantly remind myself that I WILL one day get to where I want to be, but this is a PROCESS that takes time. Sure, there are people who post that they're losing steadily, but the truth is that 90% of people lose in "spurts". PATIENCE, DEAR ONES. PATIENCE.

.....and you're losing weight and I'm NOT!! I'm doing okay, but know it can be better. If Dr. Spivak's good to go, then so am I!!!

OMG! I called my doctors office and they said, "Oh yeah, you definitely need a fill!" Cool! I'm going for my second one in a week! May 22!

Wow! I'm a member of Unity too! That's very unusual to find ...it's a very small church! But I sure do love it! Laura - I have my wedding ceremony and vows text on my computer and many said at the ceremony that it was the nicest they'd ever heard. It was pretty 'generic' and nothing about "obeying" your partner!! LOL There also was a part where we lit a unity candle. I'll be happy to send you the text if you're interested. TO FILL OR NOT TO FILL? I'm not feeling much restriction again :youcandothis: I have a couple of long weekends planned in the next month with friends who don't know about my surgery. Should I get a fill or not? I want to be aggressive this 1st 6 months and can get one as early as May 25. Leave for my first trip May 31. Then another June 14. I would really like to have a fill, I think. When I posted on the "fills" forum I got one response that said not to do it because I'd be away from my doc. I guess I should call the surgeon and ask them what they think. I hate to be a pest, but I DID pay dearly for their services!

Well, no, not 'normal' in the sense that everyone has that pain, but some do! You must have quite a bit of swelling from the surgery. Drink some warm tea, it does help. Can you dissolve your meds in water or juice? Call your surgeon's office if you continue having problems...they may have some other suggestions. Are you taking your pain meds?

First thing you should do is check the setting on your camera. You want to take the picture in a "small" format with a "low" resolution. Most people make the mistake of setting their cameras on "large" and "high"....thinking that this will improve the picture quality. Actually, all it does is make it HUGE!! The small, medium and large format determines the actual optimum size of the photo...so if you have it set to 'large', it will make it poster size!! :youcandothis: The resolution can be set to low or medium. Low is fine for computer screen display. Medium or Fine should be used for printing onto photo paper. However, if a photo is sized large already (like Lunasa's were for instance), I copy them into PowerPoint and edit them there since that is the program I use most often and am most familiar with. In PPT I go to "format picture", 'compress' the photo then manually resize it using the click and drag method. So, that's how I do it. There's probably a hundred different ways to skin that cat.

Wow....BEAUTIFUL!! Just like a dream!

I'm 4th generation Texan... my ancestors settled around the El Campo area after leaving Czechoslovakia. What about ya'll? Can't imagine living anywhere else (except maybe Colorado...during the summer!!)

Weight loss does sometimes come to a halt after beginning an exercise program and that is the time to start measuring instead of weighing. Muscles retain Water while they are repairing (after heavy workouts/weight-lifting) and that is why the scale will not reflect your true progress. Before starting a program be sure to take measurements of your neck, shoulders, both upper arms, chest, waist, hips, both upper thighs and both calves. Take follow-up measurements every month. A few years ago I was 6 weeks into an intense weight=lifting program. My weight had 'stalled' but I persevered. I suffered a back injury and had to quit lifting entirely for a few weeks. During that time I lost 6 pounds in 10 days. Just shows you how much water I was retaining! A good program should include weights 3x a week and cardio 3-5x a week.

Laura - I coordinate special events for my company and I know how complicated this can get! Have you considered hiring a wedding planner? They are wonderful sources because they've got so much experience and know the good venues, good caterers, the good DJ's, the good florists, etc. They really are worth their weight in gold.....IF THEY'RE GOOD at their jobs. Ask for references, talk to the brides who've worked with them. They work on a sliding scale of what things they arrange....all or parts.

See?? Isn't that the coolest thing ever??? Even when you think you've been eating like a total 'pig' -- you haven't!!! Gotta say it: I LOVE MY BAND! Just think that it gets even better after your fills! :eek: lctexas -- Gosh that is an awesome poem!! I sure wish i could get to my journal so I could post it there! Mdrai -- Best of luck with your liquid diet....take it one day at a time...one hour at a time, if you have to. Keep your eye on the prize. Wouldn't it be great if you could get a 10#+ jump on the weight loss?? LUNASA - How are you sweetie? Kat - sounds like an awesome trip!! Lucky you!!!! ....and glad you're OK, we were kinda worried!:phanvan

SARA - You'll do just fine, but I'll send lots of good energy your way just in case!! xxoxox

(((Pamela))) - I'm so sorry, Honey. Life can be so hard at times. I am glad you have your partner to help you through this. Those 8 years with your mom must have been terribly lonely and exhausting.